Al Qaeda bombing attacks killed at least 24 people in Algiers on Wednesday. One blast hit near the prime minister's office. The explosion appeared to have been centered near a government building that houses the offices of both the prime minister and interior minister. Six floors of the building were badly damaged and partially ripped away.

The explosion was caused by a car bomb, officials said, according to the AP. Police cordoned off stairs leading up to the government building, and paramedics raced up the steps with stretchers.

The explosion occurred at about 11:50 local time (1050GMT). At least 12 people died and 135 were wounded in this attack.

Almost at the sam time, residents of eastern Algiers reported that a second explosion had occurred there, in front of a police station. Official sources confirmed 12 were killed and 87 wounded in the attack against the police station of Bab Ezzouar (east of Algiers).

These attacks have been strongly condemned by local political parties as "cowardly criminal acts," urging Algerians to "be more vigilant to thwart the criminal intentions aiming at giving a pounding to the peace and stability recovered through national reconciliation." At the international level, the United Nations and the European Union also condemned "strongly" both attacks and called for a "concerted global action to fight terrorism."